The tale of Anna and Alistair
by minnie81
Summary: Anna arrives to Redcliffe with her mother. Her new life begins with a new friend.


**I just got another idea for a story. I haven't forgotten my other stories, but i just had to write this and see if ****something could come of it. So please, tell me what you think. Do i continue writing this?**

* * *

I held tight from my mommy's hand when we walked pass the bridge to the castle. I was little scared as we were walking so high above the lake and I could see the Redcliffe village below us. I stared at the castle amazed, it was so huge. I cant believe we were going to be living there. Well, in the servant guarders at least. My father had died and mother had to find work. She got a job as a kitchen maid and was allowed to bring me with her. I was going to be helping her and eventually become a maid too as I grew up. Mother had dressed me in my best dress. Well, my other dress that was little better than the other. We would be meeting the head of the castle staff soon and she wanted us to look good. I actually didn't really pay attention to what she spoke with her as I was looking around. The castle was amazing and I giggled by myself as I imagined being a princess.

We got a nice room from the maids guarders. We didn't have to share it with anyone. It was small, but nice and clean. We had two beds, dresser and a shelf in the room. Mother hugged me and said this was our new home now. I would have wanted to see more of the castle, but she said she needed to start working and asked me to come with her.

I was slicing cheese for the dinner. The other kitchen maids brushed my hair and said how pretty I was when they walked pass me in the kitchen. Mother smiled to me warmly. She had braided my blond hair and put the braids up nicely, so it wont mess the food. I put a slice of cheese on a tray I was arranging. It had several different cheeses. I had put them nicely into groups by the color and texture. Suddenly I saw a hand taking a cheese slice from the tray. "Hey! They are for the people upstairs!" I yelled at the boy that had appeared to the kitchen.

"I came from upstairs…" He said while he ate the cheese…

"You messed my arrangement. You cannot take from the middle" I arranged the cheese slices again. He laughed watching me and reached for another just to annoy me. I slapped at his hand, "Don't take from the tray!" I yelled…

"Anna… give him a slice" My mother ordered me and he was smiling…

I cut the big chunk of cheese in half and tossed the other half in his hands. "Here. Now, don't bother me when I am working" I took my work cutting the cheese very seriously. Mother and the other maids laughed.

"Thanks…" The boy said happily and ran off.

* * *

Next day I was watching the mabari hounds in the kennels. The kennel master was training one of them. I could tell the dog was young as it wasn't as big as the others i had seen. It had a nice brown color, kind of like what my father's horse had. I leaned to the fence and heard someone walking behind me. "Thank you for the cheese." I saw the boy from yesterday as I turned around.

"Oh, you're welcome" I said and turned back to the dogs…

He walked next to me and leaned to the fence as well "I'm Alistair"

"Anna…"

"I have not seen you here before"

"Me and my mommy came here yesterday. We work in the kitchen. What do you do here?" I asked from him and looked at him.

"I study and play…"

"You are part of the family?"

"I was adopted by the Arl. My mother worked here but she died…"

"My daddy died and mommy had to find work" I said and looked down. I missed my father so much. I was always his little girl. He carried me on his shoulders when we walked to the markets at our home village. And I sat on his horse when we went riding… Mother said he was spoiling me as he got me presents with the little money he had.

"Hey… come, I want to show you something really great" He said and took a hold of my hand and started pulling me with him.

We were running towards the main doors… "Where are we going?" I asked as I had never went in through them.

"to my room"

"mother said I should not go to the upper floors"

"You are my guest and you can come"

"Ok…" I said and was again amazed of everything I saw. There was huge paintings on the walls and polished armours on stands as decoration. Alistair's room was also huge…" This is your room?" I wondered and looked around.

"Yes"

"Its half of the size of our old home" I said and he chuckled.

"Here. Look at these. Bann Teagan brought them to me, when he visited last time" He carried figurines to the floor with his both hands.

"Oh… its so pretty" I said and held a dragon that was made from a red stone. It was almost pink.

"pretty?" He snorted.

We played with them for a long time. I did not notice it was a dinner time until…

"Alistair, the dinner is served already" We heard a voice near the door "One of the servants child is missing. Have you by any chance…" I saw a man at the door. "…seen a little girl somewhere…" He laughed "Young lady. I think your mother is worried… there are several maids looking for a little girl with blond hair" He held his hand on the doorframe.

"Oh, I'm so sorry I didn't …"

"Its ok… all that matters is that you are ok. Alistair, wash up and get to dining room. I'll escort this lady to downstairs."

"Yes. Your Grace…" Alistair went to wash his hands

The man offered his hand and I took a hold of it. "What is your name, little one?" He asked when he were walking down the stairs.

"Anna. Um… Who are you?"

"I am Eamon, The Arl of Redcliffe"

"This is your castle?"

"Yes…"

"I didn't know that. I have not seen you before. I just came yesterday"

"And made friends with Alistair already" He asks smiling

"we played with his figurines. He gave me this one" I showed him a little dragon. Alistair had given it to me as I said it was pretty. His dragons were suppose to be scary I guess.

"Oh, that was nice of him"

"He stole cheese from my tray yesterday in the kitchen" I said and the Arl laughed.

"Your Grace" The maids in the kitchen kneeled as he walked in.

"I think you have been looking for this little girl" He said and held his hands on my shoulders.

"Anna!" My mother ran to me and hugged me so tight. "Where have you been? We have been looking for you"

"I was playing with Alistair"

"I found her when I went to get the boy for dinner" the Arl said…

"I told you not to go to the upper floors" Mother said

"I don't mind" The Arl started "She can come there. Alistair could use a friend to play with"

"Thank you. Your Grace" Mother said and he nodded before he left. I babbled the rest of the day about Alistair.

* * *

It was such a fuss in the castle in couple weeks. The King was coming for a visit. I was so excited, I had not seen the King before. Well, I did see him once in Denerim, but he was very far away from us. But now he would be in the same castle. "Mommy, do I look pretty?" I asked

"Yes, darling. You are always so pretty" she kissed my forehead "why do you ask?"

"I want to look pretty if I meet the King"

"Oh, Anna… We probably wont even see him, dear"

"But I want to…"

"Anna…"

"The Arl said I can go play with Alistair. What if I am with him when the King comes?"

"Well… If you are, you might see him then" She laughed and hugged me. "Now, we have much to do" She took my hand and we went to work in the kitchen.

"Anna!" mother was calling me, running behind me as I had ran off. I heard the King was in the castle and I wanted to see him. I ran fast and giggled, looking back, I was able to run off from mother. "uh" I ran into someone and fell down on my butt. I looked up, sitting in the ground. There was a blond man laughing.

"Are you ok?" He kneeled down and helped me up.

"um… yes… sorry I… Are YOU the King?"

He chuckled… "Yes. I am Maric" Mother had caught me by now and leaned to the wall near by, gathering her breath. She stayed back as the King was speaking to me. "And, what is your name pretty one?"

"I'm Anna, Your Majesty"

"Anna… promise me you will be little more careful"

"I will" I said and he touched my hair a little. He looked at my mother as he walked pass her. I ran to mother when they were gone. "Mommy… I met the King!" I said happily.

"You sure did… now, young lady. We must get back to work. The King needs his dinner doesn't he?" She took a hold of my hand.

"We must make him a really good dinner…"

"We will, darling. We will…"

* * *

I didn't find my mother in the evening. I was wondering where she would be and looked for her. When I found her, she was with the King. I was too scared to ask from her, what they were doing. So I went to Alistair the next day. "Alistair!" I called him from his room door

"I'm here. Anna!"

"Oh good"

"Is something wrong?"

"Kind of…" I said and sat on his bed.

"Tell me" He sat next to me

"I saw my mother with the King yesterday"

"Oh, what were they doing?"

"I don't know… it was…"

"What?"

"weird…"

"how?"

"He kept poking her with his thing"

"with his thing?"

"Yes"

"Where?"

"Here" I touched myself between my legs…

"Why would he do that?" Alistair asked and looked at my hand.

"I don't know… I think she liked it… and he said it felt good"

"Oh… I have never poked anyone" Alistair wondered

"Me neither"

King Maric was going to have a little chat with Alistair and came to his room. The door was not closed and he found us. I had no underpants and Alistair's hand was between my legs. We were wondering, why did he poke her there. "What on earth are you two doing?" Maric asked amused and chuckled. I looked at him shocked and Alistair pulled his hand away quickly.

"I…" I pulled my skirt down.

Maric bit his lip to stop laughing and gathered himself. "Anna, was it? Could you give us a moment? I need to speak with Alistair"

"Of course, Your Majesty" I said and ran off.

In the evening mother had made the bath ready. She was helping me to take my dress off. "Why are you not wearing your underpants?" She asked

"um… I forgot them…"

"Forgot them? Where?"

"upstairs…"

"Why would you leave them there (she gasps) did someone touch you while you where there?"

"um… yes"

"Who?" She held her both hands on my arms…

"Alistair.."

She nearly laughed… "What? What were you doing?"

"nothing…" I said and looked down…

"Oh, darling… you two are too young for the kind of touching you need to take your pants off"

"how old I should have to be then?"

"A lot older"

"As old as you and the King?"

"What?"

"We were just wondering…"

"About what?"

"Why he was poking you there…?"

"Anna… what are you talking about?"

"I saw the King poking you… and I asked Alistair what it was… He didn't know…"

Mother laughed… "Darling… I think we need to have a little talk"

* * *

"yes… she said we need to be older to do it" I said and pulled myself up to the edge of the little bridge. There was a little waterfall on the slope to the village. We were walking over the bridge.

"be careful" Alistair said

"I will…"

"What else did she say?"

"That married people make babies that way"

"babies?"

"Yes… I guess that my mother and the King wont have a baby because they are not married…"

"I guess… but… Anna!" Alistair called my name as I fell to the stream. I screamed and hit the water. I tried to keep myself on the surface and take a hold of something. But the water just kept pulling me with it. I hit myself on the rocks and called for help. Coughed the water. I knew how to swim but I couldn't. My head hit into a rock and it all went blurry. Something stopped me. I couldn't quite see or understand what was happening. I think I heard voices and I was moving. I was not in the water, maybe someone was carrying me. I think I fell asleep.


End file.
